sailor05

Yes! I purchase it when cruising no matter what. I don't go "overboard" on it, but I at least want medical with EVACUATION included. This is what scares me. If you ever had to be air lifted off the ship, it would easily be 10's of thousands of dollars. Plus I get one that covers being transported back home if I were to get injured and taken to a hospital wherever I am. I consider travel delay and other things a bonus, but those wouldn't cause a financial hardship like a med-evac could.:eek:

We are leaving out on Easter Sunday. How difficult will it be to get a taxi to the port that morning from this hotel? Is there some way to pre arrange it? It will be less than $15, right? Thanks!!

Trust me when I say the taxi drivers know it's cruising day and they know which hotels have the most ship passengers. They will be lined up waiting for you. ;)

I've read recently that $15 including tip should cover it. That's should be within a couple bucks either way. I have a group of 7 staying at Embassy so taxi versus hotel shuttle is a no brainer. But also remember that Embassy does not have an airport shuttle either.

Don't forget to take your passport!:eek: I just watched a show about the Oasis and can't believe that people show up without them or even expired ones which are useless. Also, call your credit card company (the ONE you're going to use) and let them know you're traveling out of country so they don't freeze your account/card.

It will be coming to all ships one by one. Here's an article that talks about the new O3B which stands for Other 3 Billion people that don't have access to high speed internet.

http://www.usatoday.com/story/cruiselog/2015/02/02/royal-caribbean-wifi-o3b-internet/22752833/

Ok, thanks for that. I'll probably just wait and see when I get there. What a bummer about Margaritaville. I was looking forward to going and I still will. I'm on a quest to get their hat/t-shirt combo along with a Cheeseburger in Paradise and a margarita at ALL of them I come across which is a bunch being a cruiser;) They make for a lot of good conversations

Yep, she's underway. Bon Voyage and have a great time!

Wow! Thanks for the positive review! Its actually the 2nd good review posted today for the Oasis and after a lot of negatives the last few weeks it's very nice to hear something good:) We've got 2 CP balconies booked in June, one on deck 11 and an accessible on deck 14. I had a couple of them in 2010 on this ship and recall that they are nice change to OV cabins which are overpriced on this ship.

Thanks for the great review! I am happy to see a positive review about the ship we're going on in 3 months.:D

I don't know if it matters or not but there are NO casinos on Disney ships. That's been a deal breaker for me since day 1

You can look through these compasses and see what they offered in January.

https://drive.google.com/folderview?id=0B4oIM8NAb2u-YjZNdmtIT2xhUkk&usp=sharing

You can go through Carnival or you can book it on your own. There are a few dive shops that offer intro-to-scuba dives (Discover Scuba). Me and my kids have done it and my daughter was 12 when we first tried and I still can't believe how well she did. Its at the top of our list for our upcoming cruise in June. We go to a place called Papa Hogs which is a short can ride from the ship. Reasonable prices and they take great care of those are afraid. :eek:

Here's a link

http://www.papahogs.com/site/index2.php

I hope I don't get in trouble for posting this link a few times, but I just know that they are great people (owners are from Canada), and much cheaper than booking through the ship.

Cozumel is really known for their beautiful water and snorkeling/scuba diving. We're not certified but go to a place not far from the ship called Papa Hogs and they have a great intro-to-scuba (Discover Scuba) for a very reasonable price (wayyy cheaper than the cruise line). They give some basic instructions 20-30 minutes, suit you up and take you out until your air tanks are empty. Really nice owners and in fact we're going there again this June. It's absolutely beautiful and words can't describe the fish and colors of everything down under the water. There's a place closer to the ship but won't let you go if you're from the ship because they have an agreement with them.

Here's the link if interested

http://www.papahogs.com/site/index2.php

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If you want to shop and want to get the best deals and get more of an "Mexican feel" then take a taxi to the shopping zone in San Miguel which is just a short ride. The prices will be higher close to the ship terminal. Right outside the terminal there will be a taxi terminal where the prices are posted which makes it easy, but if you go out and flag down a taxi and negotiate you can get there for less. Just check the posted prices first so you know if you're getting a good deal. Then when finished it's super easy to flag down a taxi to take you back to the ship. Just offer them whatever you paid to get there or tell them to forget it and they'll eventually take your offer.

Check prices and if a higher cabin category is priced less than or equal to what you paid, you can generally request to be changed to the higher category for no charge.

Good advice here. Check every day morning and night but with only 24 days left I'd say your chances are slim. Especially check this site to see if your sailing is on there.

http://www.creative.rccl.com/Sales/Royal/Multi_Dest/Special_Offers/rci_sales_event.pdf

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If these new ships were smaller and held less passengers, would that not flip the supply and demand more in their favor and possibly cause prices to increase even higher than they are now? I think the smaller ships can be fun and relaxing, but for those with families the big ones have a lot more to offer.

We just did the Chukka zipline from Montego Bay. You have about a 5 min ride into the town, then the bus turns inland and UP winding roads all the way there about another 30 minutes. Jamaica is a mountainous island and beautiful. The last 10 minutes of the bus ride were on a dirt road, or as the bus driver said "the free back massage". Yes, it was a little bumpy and full of ruts but he did a good job making it as pleasant and fun as possible.

Leaving you have to take the same roads all the way back..

How was that zip line course? We did one the last time we were in Jamaica but it's been a few years and can't remember which one we did although your description of the ride sure sounds familiar. I also remember it being in a rainforest area and lots of bamboo and some of the trees being as big around as a car or bigger. Sound like this one??

Did you or someone you know or talked to venture outside the port area? I've heard mixed reviews about the safety. I'm not too keen on shopping inside the port area for my usual hats and t-shirts. I like to help out the more poorer locals and do a little negotiating for fun. :D

Flourless chocolate cake?

I'll second that! Yummm Yum[emoji1]

Well if you contact several online TA's you might get some perks. Like prepaid gratuities and a little OBC. That might help the sting a little.

What day you looking at to depart?

Too high for an inside

Embassy Suites on 17th Ave. is nice and not too expensive. And just a couple minutes walk from a shopping center where a drug store, wine store and grocery store where you can pick up some things that maybe you don't want to drag on a plane with you. Plus real close to an Outback Steakhouse and a couple other restaurants as well. So it's really a choice between great view or some local conveniences.

If you're a Hilton Honors member this site tells you how to get a good price.

http://loyaltylobby.com/2014/02/19/hilton-20-off-discount-program-in-the-united-states-hawaii-included-canada-the-caribbean-mexico-latin-america/

Our last 2 cruises have been on Carnival Dream which is one of their largest ships. I definitely liked the food better (especially the burgers), but I found that there just isn't as much to do compared to Royal's large ships. This is realized by day 4 or 5. Plus the décor was horrendous compared to Royal's (what's with the orange dining room?). Not a deal breaker by no means, but just not the same "feel" as what we're used to.

Sorry to hear it didn't meet your expectations, but maybe the Oasis was too big a bite to start with. I agree with trying to downsize a bit.

Change your mind about getting a package???

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?p=45925613#post45925613

YOU JUST SAID THIS TODAY:

"We will be On the Legend 10 day next Friday and their is no way we will be buying the drink package at over a $1000 when 5 of those days are in port and two of the excursions have drinks included. might as well take $ 500 in cash and throw it overboard."

So which is it? Buy it and steal? Or not? Troll much?